Haryana ahead of Punjab in getting SEZs

Haryana's closeness to New Delhi seems to have helped the state get a larger share of proposals for special economic zones (SEZs) than Punjab.

Haryana has received 49 proposals for SEZs, of which 35 have received approval in principle from the Centre.

Of the 49 contenders, only four -- Reliance Industries Ltd, Unitech Commercial Developers Ltd, DLF and Orient Craft -- possess land.

According to the industries department of Haryana, the proposed SEZs in the state are multi-product ones, and will focus on automobiles, food processing and information technology.

Most of the proposed SEZs in Haryana will come up in the National Capital Region and a few will be in Panchkula, Ambala and Panipat.

According to experts in the region, the concentration of so many SEZs in that part of the state will not only accentuate regional imbalances, it would put immense pressure on the infrastructure in the particular belt. The scarcity of water in the district of Gurgaon can put the projects in jeopardy in the long run.

Meanwhile, farmers in Gurgaon are mobilising public opinion against the transfer of land acquired by the Haryana State Industrial Developement Corporation by creating a special purpose vehicle. The Opposition also raised the issue of transparency in the deal. According to Sampat Singh, former finance minister of Haryana, the deal between the government of Haryana and Reliance Industries was "clandestine" and the state government did not invite the private players by advertisement.

The SEZ at Ghari Harsaru, originally to be developed by the HSIDC, has 2,800 metres on the Delhi-Jaipur Highway (NH-8) and was provided to Reliance Industries for a song, said Sampat Singh.

In both the states, it seems to be the middle-men who are minting money. "It is not possible for the business houses to contact each and every farmer so they tie up with the local real estate agents to procure the land," said a farmer in Mohali district in Punjab.

The president of Bhartiya Kisan Union Bhupinder Singh Mann told Business Standard that a farmer does not have a skillset to start another venture with the money he gets in lieu of fertile land. So the money offered to him can feed his family for a short span and starve for rest of his life".

He added that the farmers should be trained to do some other job or start his own venture to sustain his life.

In Punjab, 11 SEZs were proposed and 2 (Quark and Ranbaxy) got the final approval, told an official in Industries Department.

The Anil Dhirubai Ambani Group has proposed to put up a 5,000 acre multi-purpose project but is yet to identify land.

There was a controversy over land acquisition for the DLF SEZ proposed to come up in the Jalandhar-Amritsar belt but it had to face farmers' resistance. Now with the change in guard in Punjab the future of that project is uncertain.

According to a senior government official of Punjab, the SEZ policy of the Centre is in a flux. The role of the state comes only in the implementation stage and most of the projects are in the process of land acquisition.

Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal announced that an uproot allowance of 30% of the total price of land would offered to the farmer by the corporate player in case of land acquisition.

In Haryana, the land price for the urbanisable area of Gurgaon has been revised from Rs 15 lakh per acre to Rs 20 lakh per acre and the seller would get about 26 lakh per acre after adding the solatium. For the NCR the rate have been revised from Rs 12.5 lakh per acre to Rs 16 lakh per acre and would amount to Rs 20.80 lakh per acre after solatium.

In rest of the state the price of the land has been fixed at Rs 8 lakh per acre from Rs 5 lakh per acre and would amount to Rs 10.4 lakh per acre after solatium.